Man found dead near Index likely suspect in shooting

INDEX — Investigators believe that a Kent man who rammed a truck into his ex-wife’s home and shot her in the hand early Thursday may have ended his life near Index.

The vehicle believed to have been driven into the Kent home was found at the Lake Serene trailhead, just off of U.S. 2 between Gold Bar and Index, officials said.

Deputies discovered a man’s body near the scene. He appeared to have self-inflicted gunshot wounds, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Shari Ireton said.

The man’s identity and the cause and manner of his death are to be confirmed by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Deputies in King County were searching for a Kent man they said rammed his truck into his ex-wife’s home and then shot her in front of his three children, according to KIRO-TV, the Herald’s news partner.

King County deputies said the couple’s three children, who are between the ages of 10 and 18, were asleep when they awoke to the sound of a crash around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, KIRO reported.

Officers said the woman’s ex-husband rammed his truck into the front window of the home and fired six or seven shots from a handgun. One of the bullets struck the man’s ex-wife in the hand. She was taken to a hospital.

Two of the children escaped through the back of the home and went to a neighbor’s house to call 911. The third child hid inside the home.